Old-fashioned potato cakes are one of the best ways to enjoy potatoes. They’re super easy & affordable. They help you use up the leftover. Yay!
Why are Old-Fashioned Potato Cakes So Popular?
Old fashioned potato cakes are a great recipe with a handful of simple ingredients such as mashed potatoes, eggs, flour, and seasonings. They make some fantastic home-style treats that everyone, especially children, loves so much.
The origin of old fashioned potato cakes is from Jewish cuisine in Eastern Europe. This region tends to be very cold in the winter, so eating potatoes will give people a lot of energy and help keep them full and warm for a long time,
Potato cakes have slightly different variations from country to country. For example, in Germany, there’s a version of potato pancake with grated potatoes, chopped onion, and seasonings. In Irland, people often make potato cakes by combining cooked potatoes with buttermilk and flour.
When the old-fashioned potato cakes came to America, it was changed to mashed potatoes. Honestly, I much prefer this version because it’s smoother without lumps.
The Perfect Old Fashioned Potato Cake Recipe
Did your grannies cook potato cakes for you guys as little kids like how mine used to? In my opinion, her potato cake recipe is perfect! But that’s also a double-edged sword. I’m such an old geezer now sometimes when I wanted some of these but didn’t know how to make them. Too bad she’s no longer here with me, and I’ve got no one to ask.
I decided to go online and start searching for amazing old fashioned potato cakes and have found several very interesting ones to try. It made me so happy to have those memories back again. They were delicious.
After a few attempts, I got a few excellent recipes I will share with you today. So, you’re welcome.
1. Classic Old Fashioned Potato Cakes Recipe
This is the original potato cake recipe with the simplest ingredients.
You can enjoy these potato cakes with some applesauce on the side as a type of snack or serve them with chicken gravy as a savory option. Hope you enjoy these little yummy treats!
Time to prep | 10 minutes | Servings | 4 |
Time to cook | 10-15 minutes | Skill Level | Easy |
Potato Cakes Ingredients:
- 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
- 1-2 eggs
- 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- Cooking oil
How to Make Potato Cakes:
- Mix all ingredients in a large bowl to form a thick batter.
- Heat some oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add batter by the spoonful to the skillet—space out the cakes.
- Fry for 3-5 minutes on each side or until golden brown and slightly firm.
- Remove the cakes from the skillet and place them on a paper towel. Enjoy when hot!
2. Crispy Tuna and Potato Cakes Recipe
A very creative option for potato cakes is to combine them with tuna. This recipe is easily made for a quick lunch or an afternoon snack.
Let’s discover this fun and interesting twist to the old fashioned version, shall we?
Time to prep | 10 minutes | Servings | 4 |
Time to cook | 10-15 minutes | Skill Level | Easy |
Tuna Potato Cakes Ingredients:
- 2 medium potatoes, washed and peeled
- 2 cans of tuna, drained.
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1 clove garlic, peeled
- Cooking oil
Directions:
- Boil potatoes with a clove of garlic for 20 minutes until softened.
- Put boiled potatoes into a large bowl. Add salt and mash them well using a fork.
- Add egg, canned tuna, onion powder, and flour. Mix well until combined.
- Heat some oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
- Form the potato mixture into uniform-shaped little potato cakes. Place them in the skillet and fry for 3-5 minutes on each side until golden brown.
- Take them out and place them on a paper towel to absorb excess oil.
- Serve hot immediately. Enjoy!
3. Healthy Options in Making Potato Cakes
The traditional recipe for potato cakes is already vegetarian-friendly. However, if you need other healthy options to substitute, you can consider the following recommendations:
- Replace potatoes with sweet potatoes if you want a low-carb version of potato cakes. Sweet potatoes contain more fiber and fewer carbs. They are also terrific for your digestive system.
- You can switch potatoes to zucchini or cauliflower and all-purpose flour to plant-based flour for the keto diet. The cooking process is the same. However, technically this recipe is not potato cakes anymore. It’s up to you, though.
- Instead of deep-frying potato cakes in oil, you can lightly spray just a little bit of oil to coat the cakes and pop them in the air-fryer. The final products will come out hot and crispy but not overly greasy.
Potato cakes are very hearty and comforting to have sometimes, but not all the time. There are good sources of vitamins and minerals in potatoes.
However, please be mindful and do not consume too much. Otherwise, you will have excessive unhealthy fat and unnecessary carbs, which affect your weight, heart, and digestion.
How to Fix When Potato Cakes Are Soggy?
Make sure to fry the old fashioned potato cakes in hot oil at medium-high heat to achieve the crisp texture. If the temperature is not hot enough, they will become soggy.
Also, do not overcrowd the frying pan with too many potato patties at the same time. That way, you only steam the cakes but not fry them, and they will come out looking very sad.
How to Store Potato Cakes Properly?
If you make a lot of potato cakes and cannot finish them all, make sure to let them cool completely before storing them in the fridge for up to 3 days in a cool, airtight container.
Remember to use parchment paper to separate the cakes to avoid sticking.
If you want to remake extra old fashioned potato cakes for future use, wrap them well and put them in the freezer. They will be good within 3 months.
How to Keep Potato Cakes from Falling Apart?
Sometimes when you make old fashion potato cakes, they cannot hold their shapes very well, and they just fall apart. That means your potato patties are too wet. Add a bit extra flour and mix the batter again. Make sure to put 1 tbsp or so at a time and adjust gradually.
Tips and Praise
Betty MacAllister, “Hi my mom made this plenty of times when we where young, nothing went to waste. Thank you for the memories and maybe i will make this soon.”
Mary Collins, “Once again you nailed it with your way of cooking it’s simple and fast, since you give measurements as you cook It makes your recipe easy to follow being we can cook as we watch . l will be making your potato cakes with pork chops and a vegetable for dinner tonight with some apple sauce on the side. Thank you for this easy recipe!’
2EternityButterflies, “We made your recipe here tonight for dinner and it’s great! Really the best tuna patties we have had.We love the crispy! Thanks so much. Have a good week. Greetings from Denmark.”
Editor’s Note
Old fashioned potato cakes can be enjoyed alone or made into either sweet or savory meals. If you prefer to have them as a sweet snack, the best way is to pair them with sour cream, honey, or applesauce. On the other hand, if you like more of a savory, salty dish, pair the potato cakes with gravy sauce, tomato salsa, or even with some poached/fried eggs.
I hope you enjoy today’s potato cake recipes and often make them at home.
Please take a look at other tasty dishes by checking out the 101 Delicious website. Here are a few recommendations for you:
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